GAL Monospar ST.25 "Dubbele Arend" of Van Melle's chocolate - Special Hobby 1/72nd

 

 (Photo from the Net)

 A little story can be found here:

https://www-zeeuwseankers-nl.translate.goog/verhaal/een-vliegveld-bij-breskens?_x_tr_sl=nl&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=sc

And here:

https://www.wingstovictory.nl/index.php/Van-Melle-Breskens

Who can resist a twin tail? Here is a Special Hobby's rendition of a beautiful plane, the GAL Monospar ST.25. I have built the identical Azur kit sometime ago:

https://wingsofintent.blogspot.com/2021/09/gal-st-25-monospar-azur-172nd-injected.html

And I am also building in parallel the Aeroclub vacuformed kit of it, but in the ST-12 version:

https://wingsofintent.blogspot.com/2024/08/gal-st12-monospar-aeroclub-172nd.html

 With the previous building experience, things are a bit easier. Short run, so no locating devices, some minor flash, some thicknesses that need shaving, very nice resin details, vac canopies...yes, plural, thank goddess Styrene. A few alternate parts allow the modeler to also build two of the single vertical tail types:

Clear enough instructions:

You can see that SH provides "solid" engine/cowls, but Dekno offeres now a very cute Pobjoy that can be used to represent the model "in maintenance":

I have acquired a few, also the Gipsy Major for the ST.12 build:

Some modelers have commented on the downward angle of the kit's nacelles, puzzled by them. That's accurate.

Note: if you feel tempted to build the Kings Cup winner, G-ACTS, remember it's an ST-10, and it had a different cowl with rectilinear/faceted "bumps", and not teardrop ones as both kits have, no aft windows, single vertical tail (not double), and the race number 15. It is seen in photos with two-blade and four-blade props. Photos corroborate this drawing:

 

Now, and just as a feasibility exercise for those wanting to build an accurate ST-10, if you modify the cowls, sand away the teardrop bumps, fabricate the angular helmets and add them...

You can do that with just one cowl and for the other nacelle just use the Dekno Pobjoy "in maintenance".

The trailing edges are thick, so they are thinned from inside, as well as the wingtips and part of the root, which is thicker than the corresponding fuselage relief:

The props don't have an axle. Metal pins are inserted:

Important: if you are using the Dekno Pobjoy engine, bear in mind that at the moment of separating it from its 3D-printed cradle, you need to differentiate between exhausts and printing pillars, removing ONLY the later and leaving the connectors:

Watch out, and carefully remove the pillars one by one:

These exhausts connect the ring to the engine cylinders. Pay extra attention to the "flying" exhaust at the end of the ring, the one here at the bottom right:

If you brake one, no problem, you can use thin soldering wire to replace it.
 

Engine fronts drilled to receive the props now with axles:

Wing halves glued:

Base colors for some of the parts for both builds:

 As I did with the previous Azur Monospar I built, I opted for an alternate way to conjugate the clear part with the fuselage, instead of venturing into the dangerous and meandering path proposed by the instructions requiring to shape the aft windows areas to fit the fuselage sides. So part of the fuselage is removed to facilitate a more traditional approach. The seats are being readied:

Painting parts for the two Monospars continues:

 

Some preliminary work on the seams. This will be completed when the vacuformed transparency is added:

The vacuformed transparency is carefully trimmed to fit (dry run), removing little material at a time and testing frequently as you go. You have a spare, but try to get it in the first go. The subtle relief on the part is spot-on as a trimming guide, but at first leave some extra material as you do the rough cut, you never know:

Transparency bathed in clear acrylic after trimming:

 Glued on. Now the work of masking the windows begins. Some panels are just easy straight rectangles, but others have curves that will require some trial and error: 

The slow process of measuring and cutting the window masks begins. Pity neither the kit's manufacturer nor any aftermarket enterprise provides them or even patterns for them:

A metal spar is inserted:

All flying surfaces are glued and the model primed:

A base of gloss white to enhance the yellow/cream color to follow:

But before the control horns and the aileron mass balances are added:

One of the colors is airbrushed:

The cowls are painted in polished aluminium. The model is masked and white is airbrushed. Canopy frames and cheatline where white, so I will mask those before applying the chocolate color:

Once the chocolate color is airbrushed and the masks removed, the model is ready for a few touch-ups and the addition of engines, landing gear, antenna, etc.:

 Working now on the landing gear, one of the challenging aspects of this kit (no real anchoring points or locating devices) besides the vac canopy that makes life difficult:

 Stab struts, nose light, aileron cables, engine. I couldn't decide if using the other kit's engine or Dekno's cute 3D-printed Pobjoy, so I will alternate both for photos using a detachable plug:

 The plugs work like this:

You can plug the kit's engine as above, or Dekno´s engine:

Now I have to add the visible section of the spars that go from engine gondola to the fuselage, for which I used my own airfoiled material:

 The rudder bands are added in the form of decal stripes. The antenna is glued in place. Still to go are rudder mass balance, antenna cable, Pitot, props, etc.

 The rudder has a mass balance, and some of my other projects do too, so I am mass-producing them:

Now with the antenna wire, the rudder mass balance, beacons and prop:

And then we will have to wait for the decals.

To be continued...